•  County Wexford, Ireland

          Click on the map for other historical maps of this place

In 1887, John Bartholomew's Gazetteer of the British Isles described County Wexford like this:

Wexford.-- a maritime co. of Leinster province, Ireland; is bounded N. by co. Wicklow, E. by St George's Channel, S. by the Atlantic Ocean, and W. by cos. Waterford, Kilkenny, and Carlow; greatest length, from Hook Head NE. to Croghan Mountain, 54 miles; greatest breadth, E. and W., 30 miles; average breadth, 20 miles; coast line, about 90 miles; area, 576,588 ac. ...

---

(3668 water), or 277 per cent, of the total area of Ireland; pop. 123,854, of whom 9171 per cent, are Roman Catholics, 872 Episcopalians, 072 Presbyterians, and 073 Methodists. The coast is low and dangerous from sandbanks; the principal openings are Wexford Harbour, Ballyteige Bay, Bannow Bay, and Waterford Harbour; the chief promontories are Cahore Point, Greenore Point, Carnsore Point, and Hook Head; the Saltee Islands lie off the S. coast. The surface for the most part is level; Mount Leinster, Blackstairs, and other summits, rise along the border with co. Carlow; Mount Croghan is on the Wicklow border. The country generally has a verdant and luxuriant appearance; the soil is in some parts light and sandy, and in others of a stiff clay. (For agricultural statistics, see Appendix.) Clay-slate prevails almost everywhere, and limestone is much less abundant than in most parts of Ireland; marble is quarried near the banks of the Barrow. The principal rivers are the Slaney and the Barrow, both of which are navigable for a considerable distance. The fisheries are extensive, the chief districts being Gorey (Courtown) and Wexford. The co. comprises 10 bars.- Ballaghkeen (North and South), Bantry, Bargy, Forth, Gorey, Scarawalsh, Shelburne, and Shelmaliere (East and West); 139 pars, and 6 parts of pars.; and the towns of Wexford, New Ross (part of), Enniscorthy, and Gorey. For parl purposes the county is divided into 2 divisions - viz., North Wexford and South Wexford, each returning 1 member.

Vision of Ireland presents long-run change by redistricting historical statistics to modern units. However, none of our modern units covers an area close to that of County Wexford. If you want trends covering a particular location within the county, find it on our historical maps and then select "Tell me more".

---

Not where you were looking for?

Click here for more detailed advice on finding places within A Vision of Ireland through Time, and maybe some references to other places called "County Wexford".